Of Cheerios, Cars, and Conundrums
by The Cake Genius
Summary: The day is going normally for B and C, until all the Wammy's classes are canceled and B has an interview with L... which builds the stepping stones they can use to crush him. Originally planned to be part of a longer fic in L's POV. For Dlvvanzor, because she let me kidnap her wonderful OC! :D


**Disclaimer: I don't own any part of "Death Note," Cheerios, or the alliteration C recites to B, which is from ****_The Wizard of Oz_****. C is an OC, but also NOT MINE. He belongs to Dlvvanzor, who is very kindly letting me borrow him for this piece.**

**A/N: As I said, C is Dlvvanzor's. If you haven't read her stuff... just what, WHAT are you even DOING on this site? XD I love C and B muchly, so I hope my portrayal of them is at least adequate. *sweatdrop* I worked pretty hard on this one. B and C ended up being epically blunt,though I think it suits them... and before you ask, L is there to see what his successors' personalities are, because he wants to see how they'll work as detectives.**

**Now, onward! :D**

* * *

A strange thing happened at Wammy's one day: all our classes were cancelled.

It wouldn't have been so strange if we'd gone to any other school, or even orphanage, but we went to _Wammy's._ It just wasn't done. Even on Christmas, we still all studied. It simply didn't make sense... not that I complained. The class I was in at the time was two rooms away from B's. _Two whole rooms._ It was crazy.

We were shepherded into the scarcely used, warmly decorated playroom- well, all of us eight and under, that is. We were six, so we were there. _We, _that was right. We'd naturally gravitated towards each other through the mass of other kids, and I felt much safer holding his hand.

"I still can't believe they put us two rooms away," I whispered.

B frowned. "I know. It's not fair."

"Exactly!"

"Don't worry, C." He flashed a grin at me. "I'll take care of it some day."

I smiled back because I knew he would.

I went to a corner to play with the model cars. B was glancing around the room nervously, crimson eyes tracing the walls, but I didn't see anything wrong.

I sat cross-legged on the floor, as was my nature, and started rolling a cerulean car across the floor with one hand (the other was still in B's), humming cheerfully to myself.

I whispered to B, "Hey, 's there anyone watching?"

"No."

I reached into my pocket and pulled out a single Cheerio, popping it into my mouth. I don't know why I'd snuck a handful into my pocket at breakfast. I'd had a big bowl of them, and I was full; I just wanted more.

Suddenly, I felt B smirk next to me. "What's up?" I asked him without looking away from my cars.

"We're being watched," he told me secretively.

"How?"

"There're cameras. They're really small, but you can _feel_ 'em. It doesn't make sense for us to be here any other way..."

I knew he didn't mind being here, though, as long as we were together. "I like cameras," I said absently.

He smiled his C-smile, the one he only had for me, the one that made me feel so _special_. It reminded me again of how cold the room felt without him. "I know." Then, "I think L might've done it."

"Why?" He _was_ always right, after all.

"He wants to see what his successors are like... Hey, do you think I'll freak him out enough?"

B'd been working very hard at looking like L. I'd helped him, too, with the little information we could get. I knew B was super smart and could do anything, so I just squeezed his hand.

He squeezed back, so I knew he understood.

Then another kid- G, I think- came close to where we were sitting and took my red car.

B tensed. I drew circles on the back of his hand. Circles are a good shape. They're shaped like Cheerios, B's eyes, like infinity. I didn't want us to get in trouble _again_. What if L got mad? It might make it harder for B to beat him undercover.

But then the cerulean car was snatched right out of my fingers, leaving them suddenly empty. "Hey-!" B started.

"Weirdos," G (G? F? U? Z? I really didn't care) mumbled.

My eyes started to sting, and I sniffed.

B held my face and turned it toward him, concerned. His thumbs brushed my cheeks. "C, you're... crying..." His eyes now filled with anger, if a small apology for having to stop touching me. Then he did let go of me, and tackled G to the carpet.

B's fist connected with the boy's face, and I heard a crack. Again and again, B was hitting him, only harder when he started to whimper, not even bothering to fight back. I peered around so I could see better. Blood streamed out of G's face, getting all over B's hands.

B was smiling.

It was a crazed and violent smile, even cruel, delighted at the blood on his hands.

G was now crying in earnest, and the other kids all turned to watch in shocked silence. They didn't dare stop B.

He was insane, and he was beautiful. So, so beautiful...

I reached out to touch his shoulder like an insect drawn to a light. He felt the contact and turned his head to look at me, gracing me with his eyes. He didn't stop hitting him, and his smile was welcoming, almost inviting me to join in on the fun.

"I'm doing an experiment," he told me." "I want to see how log it takes for the bleeding to die down."

Surprisingly, I wasn't disturbed at all. In fact, I started to wonder the same thing...

"That's cool," I breathed. The blood matched his pretty, pretty eyes. But I didn't want us to get in _too_ much trouble, you know. "... You might want to stop, though."

B pouted. "Why?"

"Well..." I looked at the boy beneath him, lacking enthusiasm. "He might die."

B shrugged (still attacking him, but with a bit less strength). "Who cares?"

I considered that for a second. "Good point." B wouldn't care. I wouldn't care, since the only person I really cared about was B. Besides us, who _mattered_?

Well... L mattered. L mattered a lot to B.

"You might get in trouble with L. It'd suck if we got kicked out."

"Thant's true," B sighed, and reluctantly got off G (or whoever), after twisting his nose a final time. He'd be disfigured from that.

"Plus," I added (ha), "I guess it's not so good to hurt people... but if you do it, it's all right."

"He made you cry," B said. "That's not okay."

I felt warmer all over. Who needed parents, when B was there? Who needed _anything_ when B was there? I smiled and hugged him. "You're my_ hero_," I said, and kissed his cheek.

He hugged me back. "If someone hurts you, just tell me. I'll protect you."

"Me, too! I wanna protect you, too!"

"Okay. We'll protect each other."

We held each other tighter. He felt like a warm comforter, and neither of us was going to let go any time soon.

"I love you."

"I love you, too."

We'd already known.

Then the stupid loudspeakers interrupted us.

"Will A and B please report to Mr. Wammy's office," Roger's voice warbled. "A and B. Thank you."

We pulled apart, but still held hands out the door.

"I wonder what A did," B mused as we walked down the halls.

"I know, right? He's so good, it's freaky."

"I think he'd have a heart attack if he got a 99 percent-"

"U- Um, guys? You know I'm here, right...?"

So he was, in all his trembling, anxious, OCD glory. B voiced what we were both thinking: "Oh... yeah..." and we continued talking on our own, vaguely aware of A's blank stare on us.

We arrived at Wammy's office, and Roger opened the door. "We'd like to see both of you individually, starting with... A... C, what are you doing here?"

I quickly hid behind B, but since B was even skinnier than me, it sort of backfired.

Roger sighed. "Go away, C. A... come in. It's time for you to meet L." A walked in in a trance of reverence, and I stayed put with B.

B gave me words as presents sometimes. He looked through the C section of the dictionary until he found one I'd like. A couple weeks ago, he'd given me "cantankerous," and I'm pretty sure it applied in Roger's case.

"I wonder what they're talking about in there," said B. His expression was hungry. "It's probably just his voice from a computer, but... I can know what I'm up against." He giggled. "I have him, C, I have him!" He started jumping up and down, laughing. I laughed and clapped my hands with him.

He suddenly stopped, stared silently at the door. "Now, we wait."

"Now, we wait," I copied.

It felt like forever. I wondered what A was doing in there. He _was _a perfectionist. B was, too, but in a different way- A was just obsessed with grades. I know exactly the number of times he'd gotten less than a hundred percent on a test, because he'd about thrown a fit each time: eight. One day, he had to wear short sleeves because it was hot out. I'd noticed eight tiny scars on his wrist.

I wondered, now, what that that felt like... to cut yourself, I Mean. It might not be so bad... Cuts are kind of cool. B might like that, too... I wonder...

I crunched a few more Cheerios.

Finally, it was done, and A came out quivering.

B ran in without prompting, pulling me behind him.

"C! I told you to leave!" Roger barked.

"I'm staying," I told him calmly.

"He's staying," B told him calmly.

"L did not request you," Roger's voice clipped. He was really mad. "Go to your room!"

"NO!"

"If C can't be here, I'm not talking, either!"

"Stop being ridiculous!"

B lost it, and screamed. And screamed. And screamed. He doesn't scream like normal normal people scream. He never runs out of air, and instead of letting his eyes shut, he forces them wide open, knowing that their crimson color freaks other people out. So he screamed, and I did my best puppy eyes, and it was only a matter of time before Roger cracked.

His eyes darted between us, his face contorting into the strangest shapes and colors, until he shouted, "FINE!" and we both immediately stopped. He then turned to a computer on his desk, rubbing his temples. "L, what do you think?"

A black, calligraphic L floated in the center of the screen. A fake voice came out, sounding nothing but alien and curious. "This is most interesting. C, would it be acceptable to wait outside the door?"

I sighed. "M'kay."

"I'd like to meet with you personally after I finished with B. He can wait in the same fashion."

"All right."

B communicated to me with his eyes: _It's fine. Just find everything you can._

_Okay._

I uneasily let go of his hand and stepped outside. The door felt like it slammed behind me. I was suddenly colder, and crammed a few more Cheerios into my mouth. I crossed my arms and tried to keep my breathing normal. But-

_I can't see B. He's not here. It's not right._

I knew I had to be strong. He was right behind that door. But I had only prepared for being apart from him for one class, and unprepared-for B withdrawals were NOT cool.

_He's not here. It's_ wrong_!_

I thought of comforting things to calm be down.

Cheddar cheese on crackers.

Chemistry class.

Cheshire cats.

Colors: cerulean, copper, crimson, cream.

Carts of carrots.

Cheerios in a ceramic bowl.

Cars in a corner.

Collars, chokers, cuts, crosses, centerpieces, calamities, cathedrals, catastrophes, cacti...

When B came out, we both visibly relaxed, feeling much better now that our bodies were close again. I hurried inside after whispering, "Clinking, clanking collection of contraptions."

"I love you, too."

And the door closed again.

Roger pointed me to a chair across from the desk. I promptly sat in it criss-cross-Cheerio-sauce, and cocked my head as I smiled at the L. "Hi."

A slight pause came, but then the synthetic voice projected, "Hello, C."

I bounced a little. I could be here for B. If L could find stuff out about us, then we could find stuff out about him.

"What is your relationship to B?" he asked bluntly. I don't think he was trying to be rude; he just didn't see the point in pleasantries.

Okay. "B is B," I answered simply.

Another pause. "Is there... anyone else that you're friends with? Anyone else in your world?"

"Nope." These questions were easy. It had always been Us and Everybody Else. B, me, and Wammy's House.

"I see," the voice said. "Do you think that you could be in second place if you tried harder?"

"I study super hard, but B's really smart. That's okay, though." Why was he asking this? What were his motives?

"Do you believe that hurting others is a good thing?"

"No, of course not." I honestly didn't, and I honestly don't.

"But B is a good person, even though he hurts other people?"

"Yep." (Duh- I thought this guy was supposed to be smart.)

"You're very loyal."

I smiled again. "I love B!" It was a fact of nature.

The computer murmured, "I understand." The voice was even, but I got the prickly sensation of being lied to. I knew then that L _didn't _understand. He hadn't _loved. _He was distant, _lonely. _Didn't that scare him at all? I suddenly felt very sorry for him. Of course, I still hated L, but I didn't dislike this person I was talking to.

"You don't have a B?"

"I find that I work more efficiently on my own. I hope that you and B may work harmoniously as detectives in the case that something should happen to A."

"Uh-huh," I lied. We were going to defeat him in a way more important that test grades and essays: we were going to _crush_ L.

I popped another few Cheerios.

"That will be all. Thank you for your time."

"Huh? That's all?" What was the point in that?

"Yes."

I walked out of the door confused. B rose from where he crouched and we re-connected our hands.

"He's completely alone," I told him on our way back to our room. "He doesn't love anyone."

He C-grinned at me. "Well done, C! You have uncovered his weakness! We shall definitely succeed- two heads are better than one!"

I swelled at his compliments. "Yes."

What L didn't know was that together, we were unstoppable. We'd beat him, and then our love would multiply and fill the world.

It was, after all, just another fact of nature.

* * *

**Now I get to spit** **my random headcanon that I couldn't fit in the fic at you! XD I have no idea if any of these happened, but they totally happened in my mind:**

**1) One time, as a present, B gave C a cerulean choker/collar with a copper cross in the center. Because it's made up of C-words, shows dominance, and I have a choker kink. O¬o**

**2) They had this whole ceremony when they tried each others' foods by feeding them to one another on spoons at the exact same moment. C tried strawberry jam, and B tried Cheerios. Idk, but it was so CUTE when I picyured it. 3**

**3) Cat-Cat was totally one of the animals against the walls for B's third murder.**

**4) B got jealous of Christopher once. C's cactus, remember? XD **

**5) I was watching mellosgoggledgamer play the cup game yesterday, and I randomly pictured C playing it with a big smile on his face, and I was like, :DDDDDD**

**Now I must cease, because it's late and I'm getting weird(er), so... review... pleasepleaseplease... For C? *v***


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